Alicante airport has been forced to close after detecting suspected drones near its runways.
The alert forced the temporary closure of the terminal until at least until 1am on Tuesday – and the suspension of air operations for security reasons.
The ‘possible detection’ of drones near the airport also caused flights from other destinations to be diverted to Valencia, Palma de Mallorca and Murcia.
One Brit fumed on X that his mother’s flight was diverted to Barcelona, adding that she had to get a bus to her home.
‘My mum wont get home gone 6am now from Barcelona,’ they said, ‘I’m fuming, so mad. She has no battery she should have got got home by 11pm. Whichever bell*** has flown a drone needs arresting.’
The first flights to be diverted were from Manchester and Lanzarote, both of which were scheduled to arrive at 9.50pm.
According to Aena and air traffic controllers, another flight from Krakow to Alicante was also diverted, as were flights from Newcastle, Liverpool, Budapest, Amsterdam, London and Frankfurt.
The use of drones near airports is strictly prohibited and can result in serious fines or even jail, depending on the seriousness of the infraction.
Aena said in a post on X: ‘Due to the presence of a drone in the vicinity of the Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport, flight diversions are occurring.
‘We are working together with the Security Forces to normalise operations as soon as possible.
‘Check with your airline for the status of your flight.’
